His Happy Ending
by Siriusgirl1
Summary: He was in a deserted train station. Whoa, hold it. A train station? The last he knew, he was in the Department of Mysteries, duelling his insane cousin. He had to get back. Harry needed him! And...was that an illusion or was it really James Potter...?
1. Chapter 1

**A/N**

You know that chapter "_King's Cross" _in the last Harry Potter book? Well, I was curious about the whole 'after-death' experience ever since I read that chapter. Couple _that_ with the fact that I…well, wanted _some_ sort of closure for the whole deal with Sirius Black (who, unfortunately, failed to 'come back' in the way I was –blindly- hoping he would)…and, well, the result is _this_. It was originally meant to be a one-shot, but then the whole thing was too long, and would be an absolute _pain_ to read in one go, so I decided to divide it into two chapters.

Hope that didn't ruin it in any way!

**Disclaimer: **It all belongs to JK Rowling. Every _single_ bit, except, of course, to the dark-haired, grey-eyed, smirking man who's currently seated behind me and……sticking chewing gum in my hair. Apparently, that's his way of telling me that he _doesn't_ belong to me. Pity.

* * *

**Chapter One**** An Illusion or the Real Thing?**

Peace;

Quiet;

Silence; it took a moment for this to register in his mind, and when it did, it only served to make him slightly more confused than he already was.

Why was it so quiet? And…why did it feel odd to know that it _was_ so quiet?

Er, and _why_ was he lying on his back on the ground; on the _hard_ ground?

Shrugging, he moved his limbs slowly, letting out a loud sigh of relief when he discovered that they were all in good order and that nothing seemed to be wrong.

Hang on, why would he expect anything to be wrong?

With a small frown on his face, he first pulled himself into a seated position before eventually standing up. A quick glance around him told him that he was in some kind of…train station.

_Train station? What the, _he paused, absently brushing dark strands of hair from his eyes, _hell is going on? _As he lifted his arm to brush his hair from his eyes, he couldn't help but notice that something didn't feel right…

…he felt…well, he felt _light_. It was as though he didn't ---

_Oh bloody__ Merlin's pants, _he thought, looking slightly aghast as he glanced down at himself, _what the heck is going on?_

Why the heck was he _naked_?

"Alright, whoever did it, it's not funny. It's actually _kind of_ creepy. I'm only going to say this once, because I'm not the kind of person who goes down on his knees and begs. Can I have my clothes back?"

He got no answer, and, if he was to be honest, he wasn't sure if he had even expected one. "_Fine_, keep _my_ clothes. Can I at least have _something _to wear?"

He received no answer to that request, but suddenly saw a set of neatly folded clothes on the ground before him. He blinked. How had _they_ gotten there _without_ him noticing-?

Well. It wasn't like he was _complaining._

Moving hurriedly, he pulled on the clothes, glad to find that he had every item of clothing he needed _and_ that they all fit him. Fit him quite well actually.

For some reason, he found that even _creepier_ than finding himself in some godforsaken train station without any clothes on.

Once he was clothed, he glanced down at himself – out of habit – to make sure that…well, he hadn't missed anything. Like an unbuttoned button…or an unzipped zip (he had seen that happen to James once or twice, and had been petrified of the same thing happening to him).

And it was then that he noticed it.

_He_ was different. He wasn't the slightly (_slightly_, mind you) out of shape man that he was positive he had been, as of a few minutes ago. No, instead, he was quite…fit, if he might say so himself, _about_ himself.

And it only got…better.

He was young, young_er_, _much_ younger, than the thirty six years he was _sure_ he had been when he had arrived in the Department of Mysteries in time to help Harry and his friends---

His face paled, and continued to do so as he remembered the hideously smug face of his dark-haired cousin, followed by her revolting cackling as they dueled and as she…

_Shit. Shit. _

What was he doing here, wherever 'here' was? He was needed at the Department of Mysteries. Someone had to take care of Bellatrix, and he knew that he was qualified for the task, having more or less _grown up_ with the bloody-

"Harry!" he yelled out, suddenly very, _very_ afraid. "Harry! _Harry!_ Can you hear me? Harry!!" His breath was coming in quick gasps now as he looked wildly around him. He saw nothing except for empty areas and the occasional hard-seated bench or two.

He was starting to panic, and he knew it. "H-Harry, c'mon kiddo, say something," he almost pleaded, grey eyes clouding with some emotion he could not quite place. "Please, kiddo, just _say_ something…" He strained his ears, determined to catch the sound of his godson's voice, but did not hear it. "Oh god…_Merlin_, no…" he whispered, "no, no, _no_, he can't be…I…no. This isn't even the Department of Mysteries, and-"

Hearing a sound from somewhere behind him caused him to stop his panicked mumbling _and_ to tense. He was pretty sure that he hadn't imagined that sound…whatever it was.

Grey eyes narrowing, he clenched his jaw shut and slipped his hand into the left pocket of his trousers. A moment later he whirled around with his wand arm stretched out before him, fingers curled around……

……nothing.

He stared at his hand, aghast, when he saw that it was empty. A quick search in his other pockets told him what he had feared; he didn't have a wand.

_What the-__? I _need_ it. If I'm going to go back and help Harry, I _need_ my bloody wand!_

Hearing what sounded like…shuffling feet, he grimly pulled himself out of his thoughts and bravely glanced ahead of him, pulling himself to his full height as he did so. He may not have a wand, but he would _not_ be defeated easily.

_Not when he still had to get back to the Department of Mysteries._

At first, all he saw was a bit of mist; rather, it looked like…the smoke that trains usually emit as they come to a halt, or start up their engines.

_Well duh,_ he thought, _I _am_ in a freaking train station._

As the mist…or whatever it was cleared, the black-haired, grey eyed man could not stop his jaw from dropping open, despite his confident promise that he would _not_ be defeated easily.

But he did recover soon.

"I don't know what you're trying to do, _Bella_," he said, as icily as he could although his voice had a slight tremor in it, "but it's _not_ going to work." He shot daggers at the bespectacled, black-haired figure that stood several feet away from him.

The bespectacled figure stared at him for a moment, looking confused.

"Sirius-"

"-No, _no_, don't. I know you're not real. I _know_ it. So just…disappear. Burst into flames or whatever. Just…go. You're not real and you're _not_ going to mess with my head. It's already messed up enough."

"But Sirius-"

"-I said _shut up_!"

"Sirius, I'm not-"

"_SHUT UP! JUST SHUT UP! COME OUT AND _FIGHT_ ME, BELLA, INSTEAD OF HIDING BEHIND YOUR…ILLUSIONS LIKE A BLOODY COWARD! COME OUT AND FIGHT ME, NOW!"_ His eyes darted in their sockets as he tried to spot any place where his cousin might be hiding.

"Padfoot, this is _so_ not the greeting that I imagined when I thought of this day." The bespectacled figure shook his head. "I don't get a hug or a pat on the back; no, instead, I'm asked to burst into flames. What the hell is _that_ about?"

Sirius, who was doing his best to cut the voice off, to pretend that he _wasn't_ seeing who..._what_ he was seeing, couldn't help but stare at the man for a moment.

_Merlin, _he thought, feeling suddenly drained, _he looks so much like him...if I didn't know any better, I'd _definitely_ say that it's James, standing before. _

He shook his head. _No,_ he firmly said to himself, _this is _not_ James. James is dead. _Dead. _This is just some kind of sick, perverse---_

Grey eyes widened.

What if it _wasn't_ an illusion? Or a sick, twisted joke?

What if he was _actually_ seeing...seeing – the striking young man shook his head; no, he couldn't afford to believe that, no matter how much his heart wanted him to.

The bespectacled figure had taken a few steps towards him by now.

"Padfoot, mate, listen to me...I don't know why you think I'm some kind of an illusion-"

"-That would be because you're supposed to be_ dead_."

"-_or_ why you think someone would want to play a vicious joke on you-"

"-Not just _'someone'_; it's Bella – remember her?"

"-Neither do I know why you wish for me to...burst into flames-"

"-You can just go stick your head up your arse and die of suffocation for all I care. You are _not_ him."

"-For the love of Merlin, Padfoot-"

"-No, I'll have to pass on that one. You can have Merlin's love all for yourself, because I am most certainly not gay. And I didn't think _you_ were either. Then again, you're just an illusion, so it _figures_..."

The black-haired, bespectacled figure shut his mouth for a moment, a somewhat...pained expression appearing on his face as he took in striking, grey-eyed young man who was standing before him and gazing at him with eyes full of pure hatred and...

...fear.

"Sirius-"

"-I _don't_ have time for this! Bloody hell, I _need_ to get back! Harry needs my help!" Sirius paused as an entirely unsettling thought made itself known in his head. _What if he was too late for Harry? _"He needs my help..."

"What? But Sirius, you're d-"

"-Listen, illusion or not, you _must_ care for your son. Bella's on the rampage, and she's already taken down Tonks. I _have_ to do something about her – especially seeing how I was battling her before I...arrived in this freaky place. I _need_ to get back to the Department of Mysteries you...whatever you are, so get the hell out of my way. Better yet, tell me _how_ I can get back to the Ministry."

A glimmer of realization appeared in the hazel eyes of the bespectacled figure, quickly replaced by a glimmer of sadness.

"Padfoot, you can't go back."

"And why the hell not?!"

"Padfoot, I...don't know how to tell you this, but-"

"-Then don't. Just focus on-"

"-Sirius, you're dead."

"I – excuse me, but, I'm _what?_"

"Dead, Sirius. Dead."

"Oh, bloody hilarious. Are you done messing with my mind? Yes? Good, can I go-"

"Can't you remember what happened in the Ministry, while you were duelling Bellatrix?" There was a venomous note in the bespectacled figure's face as he said the name – a venomous note that Sirius _had_ to appreciate.

"What? Of course I remember. We were hurling spells at each other, which by the way, is what you _usually_ do in a duel."

"And then?"

"And then _what_?"

"And then _what happened_?" The hazel-eyed figure sounded impatient.

His tall, lean companion opened his mouth to utter some scathing remark, when he suddenly stopped. Grey eyes appeared dazed, as though his thoughts were in a faraway place. A moment later, the grey eyes widened.

"I – I..._died_?" It was more of a question, even though his mind told him quite logically and firmly that he had no need to _ask_ it.

"Yeah, Sirius, you died."

"I...died."

"Yeah, you did."

"I'm dead."

"Yeah, you are."

"I died in the Ministry, and now I'm..._here_, and I'm...dead..."

"Yeah." He watched his grey-eyed friend out of concerned hazel eyes, wondering what was going on in his head. When he had arrived in this place, fourteen years ago, he had accepted the fact that he was dead. And he had had Lily with him after a brief moment.

He could only imagine how his friend was feeling at the moment, not having _known_ that he had died.

* * *

**A/N**

I had to stop it there and include the rest of this in the second – and last – chapter, or else the whole thing would have been unusually, _painfully_ long to read.

Hope you're liking it so far!

See ya!

Siriusgirl1


	2. Happines At Last

**A/N**

Well, here's the rest of it! Hope you enjoy this little piece!

* * *

_Recap:_

_He watched his grey-eyed friend out of concerned hazel eyes, wondering what was going on in his head. When he had arrived in this place, fourteen years ago, he had accepted the fact that he was dead. And he had had Lily with him after a brief moment. _

_He could only imagine how his friend was feeling at the moment, not having known that he had died._

* * *

**Chapter Two:**** Happiness At Last**

"Oh god," whispered Sirius, a hand covering his face, "Harry..." When he looked up at the bespectacled figure, there were tears in his grey eyes. "Harry...I've left him. I promised him that I'd be there for him, to protect him, to...make up for my absence in his life, and now – and now-"

He couldn't continue, and sunk slowly to his knees with his face an almost deathly shade of white.

"Padfoot, it's not your fault-"

"-Do you know how many times I've _heard_ that?! Well you're wrong, you're _wrong_, alright?!" Sirius shook his head, a somewhat hysterical note entering his voice as it rose. "It's my fault. _My _fault. I couldn't raise Harry like I was supposed to, and he was miserable for the first ten years of his life. And before that..."

He glanced up at his hazel eyed companion who was suddenly closer to him than he had been a moment ago. "Oh god...you...and Lily...oh god, it was my fault...if I – if I hadn't suggested...if I hadn't tried to be a _freaking smartass_, then-"

Sirius stopped abruptly, partly because the lump in his throat made it almost impossible for him to speak, and partly due to the fact that he was suddenly being enveloped in a hug.

A _hug_.

He was pretty sure that illusions were not supposed to be able to physically _touch_ anything...but then again, if it was an illusion created by the use of Dark Magic, who knew?

Not caring whether it _was_ an illusion or the...real thing as it were, he found himself leaning in to the hug, ignoring the awkwardness of their position on the ground. "I'm so sorry; _so_ sorry," he whispered, clutching onto the black robes that the bespectacled figure wore.

His grip on the robes increased. "Oh god, I am _so_ sorry..."

"You don't have to be. You shouldn't feel like you _should_ be," said the figure, his familiar voice so quiet that Sirius had to strain his ears to hear him. "It was for the best; you only wanted to make sure that we were as well protected as we could be. How were _you_ supposed to know that he would betray us?"

Sirius shook his head against the figure's chest, his breath coming in quick, painful gasps.

"D-Dumbledore...he should have...he should have been your Secret-Keeper-" he choked on a sob, "-he wouldn't have betrayed y-you..."

"You didn't betray us, Padfoot, how could you even _think_ that?"

"I did! If _I_ didn't, who did?! If I had just kept my big fat mouth shut, I would have continued being your Secret-Keeper!" The hysteria seemed to be returning. "_He_ wouldn't have been involved at all, and then Harry...and you and Lily-"

"-And you wouldn't have spent thirteen unnecessary years locked up in Azkaban." A shiver ran down the grey-eyed young man's spine as he thought of the wizard prison and the long years he spent there.

"I deserved it," he said, in a small voice. "I deserved every long year I spent there, and I deserved even _more_. For being such a – _goddamned fool_!" His voice broke as a tear trailed down his face. Stubbornly, he shook his head in an attempt to regain _some_ control of himself.

"No, Sirius, you've dealt with this for _far_ too long," said the hazel eyed young man, hugging him tighter, "let it out. Trust me; you'll feel a little better afterwards. And you know that I won't judge you in any way for it..."

And just like that, the dam broke.

The bespectacled figure said nothing as he held his best-friend; no, as he held his _brother_ to him. He simply increased the strength of his hold on him, resting his chin on his brother's shaking shoulder. There were so many things that he wanted to tell him, things that he had waited for _so_ long to tell him.

Things such as how he was more than proud of him for putting up with everything and _still_ coming through it all to be there for Harry when he needed him; such as how sorry he was to have involved him in everything, for having, indirectly, been a cause for all of his suffering; such as how Lily had screamed bloody murder and threatened to wring the necks of Barty Crouch Senior, Peter Pettigrew, Albus Dumbledore, Mad-Eye Moody and later Cornelius Fudge, when she found out what had happened to the friend who had grown to be very dear to her.

But he knew that his brother – yes, for that was what Sirius Black was; his _brother_ – did not need to hear any of that. No, at the moment, all he needed was to be held. To be held and to be assured that he was _not alone_; not anymore. He shivered at the thoughts of his friend's life since that fateful night, fourteen years ago. His life, as he knew it, had ended at the promising age of twenty two.

He would have had difficulty in recognizing him if had retained his image as the thirty six year old man he had been, at the time of his death.

Luckily, it seemed as though the powers that _be_ had decided that he deserved to lead a better life in this...world of the afterlife. And this better life had started with him being reverted back to the strikingly good looking twenty two year old young man he _had been_, when his normal life in the world of the living had...ended, as it were.

He was snapped out of his thoughts when he felt Sirius struggle to pull away from his embrace. He slowly loosened his grip on him, but still kept him in his embrace.

Grey eyes – with faint red outlines around them – stared into his warm, welcoming hazel ones for a moment, searching for something.

"You're-" Sirius stopped to clear his throat when his voice came out in a peculiar sort of...squeak. "You're not an illusion, are you? I mean, it's..._really_ you, right?"

The desperate note in his voice tugged at James Potter's heart. _What_ had he gone through to doubt his eyes in such a manner?

"No, Sirius, I am most certainly _not_ an illusion. I solemnly swear that I am James Potter."

"How can I be sure...?"

James resisted the urge to close his eyes at the second painful tug at his heart. _Oh Padfoot._

"Why are you asking me this, Sirius?"

"Because you appeared before me in Azkaban, you and Lily. And...you just leered at me, telling me that I got exactly what I deserved, and that you'd never ever forgive me and that I was bound to end up in-"

Sirius was forced to stop when James hugged him again, although more harshly so that he suddenly found it somewhat difficult to breathe. He could feel the bespectacled man shaking and frowned. "James?"

"No, _no_, we would never – we didn't even _think_ to blame you – Padfoot, I am so-"

"-Sorry?" The wry note in his voice caused James to pull back so that he could see his friend's face.

"Yeah..." he said, quietly, hazel eyes lighting up as he saw the grin that twisted his friend's lips upwards. True, it wasn't the brilliant grin he had been used to, but it was still _something_.

"I think I've said enough 'I'm so sorry-ies' for us both don't you think, Prongs?"

James nodded, a smile forming on his own lips.

"Yeah." He cleared his throat. "Yeah, I think you _have_."

The two were silent for a few moments after that.

"About Harry..." Sirius winced at the pain he felt when he thought of his godson. _What must he think of me now? Does he hate me for leaving him?_ "I'm sorry-"

"-Padfoot, if you say '_I'm sorry'_ or any variations of that phrase one more time I am going to hex you to Merlin-knows-where and back again."

The corners of Sirius' lips twitched upward.

"I'd like to see you try," he said, before looking around. They were still kneeling on the ground, still wrapped in James' embrace. "Where is she?" he asked suddenly, turning back to James.

James Potter's face lit up as he focused his eyes on something behind his brother. Sirius didn't seem to notice this and continued to question him. "Well? Where _is_ she? She...she _is_ here, isn't she? She didn't...leave you or anything, because your silly best-friend betrayed-"

"-If she _did_ think that, then she deserves a much _worse_ view of the afterlife," cut in an all too familiar voice, causing James to smile brightly and Sirius to stiffen.

Before he had time to turn around, the fiery-haired young woman was kneeling by his side and had her arms wrapped around him, holding him in a tight, desperate hug. Her fingers stroked his soft black hair as he rested his face on her chest. "You are a bloody, idiotic, too-loyal-" her voice broke, "-fool, who I would give the _world_ to if I could..."

Choking on a sob as he laughed weakly, Sirius buried his head further on to her chest.

"No need to go that far; a couple of dungbombs and a beautiful young woman would be enough," he said, weakly attempting a joke. Lily smiled tremulously as she gently pulled away from him, staring intently into his eyes; eyes which looked far too...old for someone of his...nature.

Green eyes met grey and held the gaze for a long moment or two, until Sirius looked away, finding himself reminded of his godson once more.

_How he must loathe me..._

"He doesn't hate you Sirius," said Lily Potter, her green eyes twinkling as he looked at her in surprise. "Rather, he hates the-" she stopped, never having been one to be fond of swear words, no matter _how_ appropriate they were, "-vile excuse for a human being who did this to you."

Sirius had a saddened expression on his face once more.

"He's all alone again..." he whispered. "I left him alone, and he _must_ hate me for that. Especially when I...promised that I would always be there for him..."

James and Lily exchanged a quick glance.

"Would you believe us if we were to tell you something that would tell _you_ he doesn't hate you?" Sirius shrugged at James, who in turn nodded at his wife.

"He used the _Cruciatus Curse_. On Bellatrix Lestrange, when she tried to run away after...well, you know," said Lily. Sirius' jaw dropped open.

"He – I beg your _pardon_?"

"_Oh?_" Lily turned to James, her green eyes twinkling, "How about _that_, James? He's actually learned some _manners_! Who'd have thought the day would come when _Sirius Black_ would say _'I beg your pardon'_?"

James grinned.

"But that's an Unforgiveable!" exclaimed Sirius, eyes still wide.

"You learning manners? No, it's more of a life-changing, world-altering event." Lily paused. "Who knows, maybe Voldemort will start dressing in pink robes and go around hugging and giving his sincerest apologies to all Muggles, Muggle-borns and Blood traitors before announcing that the Death Eaters are actually members of the _'Dumbledore Rocks my Socks'_ club, of which he is Supreme President."

James and Sirius both grimaced as they stared at the fiery-haired woman.

"That just...brings me urgh, _bad _mental images-"

"-Bad? I'd say traumatic."

"True. I don't think I'm going to be able to _sleep_ for years."

"Merlin, Prongs, get your woman's imagination under control. I think I'm scarred for life."

"You and me both."

"Oh shut it, you two."

The three young people stayed where they were, kneeling on the ground. As he looked at his brother, James' eyes widened when he saw the relaxed expression on his face. Lily seemed to have noticed it too, for she was staring at the black-haired man himself.

Shooting them a questioning glance, Sirius was quick to shrug off their looks, choosing to glance around him once more instead.

"Sirius," said James, suddenly. "If, and I mean _if_, you had the chance to...go back _there_...would you?"

"Go back where?" asked Sirius, although he knew what James was referring to.

"Back to, you know, your old life."

Sirius pretended not to feel the two anxious gazes that were almost burning him. _Would he go back if he could? _He tilted his head to a side. That depended on...certain things.

What did he _have_ to go back to? _Harry, _he thought, immediately, _and Remus...and Tonks. I never got to see Andromeda either..._

Then what would he gain by staying _here_, in the...afterlife, of whatever it was called? _What a stupid question, _he couldn't help but think, _What would I gain? Well, _duh_, I'd gain two of the most important people in my life!_

_And I'd be free too...not having to watch my back, or...move around like an escaped convict..._

_But then there's Harry..._

He sighed.

"If there _was_ any way of going back, if there was any indication that going back would help Harry in some way...yeah, I...think I'd go back," he said, quietly, not wanting to meet James and Lily's eyes.

He soon found himself in a joint embrace again, much to his chagrin even though he had enjoyed the first few. Honestly, did they think he was some insecure, angst-filled teenager who needed constant reminders of the fact that he was loved?

Ah, he _had_ been one of those. Ages ago.

"Even though going back would mean...going back to the world that pretty much shunned you? That...caused you all of this pain?"

Sirius nodded into James' shoulder.

"If it'd help Harry..." he mumbled.

"Oh _Sirius_," whispered Lily, feeling tears sting her eyes. "You'd do that? Just for our son; for Harry?"

"He's my _god_son too, you know," said Sirius, somewhat indignantly, "I have certain rights to him too!" James chuckled softly.

"Believe me, Padfoot, we know. We know that you love him as dearly as you would love a child of your own blood."

"He's your son," muttered Sirius, "That makes him a child of my own blood." The embrace tightened, but Sirius didn't say a word.

It sort of felt..._nice_. To be held. To _know_ that he was loved...and that he wasn't alone.

_Merlin's beard_, he thought wearily, _I'm starting to sound like an insecure, angst-filled teenager._

Shaking his head, he forcefully pulled away from his companions, going as far as to stand up to make sure than he wouldn't be grabbed in a hug once more.

"So," he started, causing James and Lily to stare curiously at him. "...What do you do for fun here?"

As James jumped to his feet with a wide grin on his feet, Lily simply rolled her eyes, daintily brushing off non-existent dust from her clothes.

_I should have known, _she thought fondly, as she watched her husband and his 'brother', _that those two would never change. Not even in death. _

* * *

**A/N**

It was originally meant to be a one-shot piece, with just James in it, but...well, I couldn't include _one_ dead Potter without the other, could I? When it became too long to be a one-shot, I decided to divide it into two chapters.

Hope that was good!

See ya!


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